Actress and singer Brie Larson has shared a heartbreaking throwback photo to a time when she felt “flashes of embarrassment” appearing on a red carpet. She said, “I worried I was too fat, too ugly, too depressingly banal to be honored.”
This year, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Joy ‘Ma’ Newsome in Room, but only three years ago, she was largely unknown, attending the Maui Film Festival wearing a dress she picked from her own wardrobe.
In her latest Instagram post, Larson writes, “It shocked me to find this photo because I remember the day so well.”
The 26-year-old says she wasn’t well known enough to have a stylist or “glam squad,” and “the most I knew how to do for grooming was pin half of it back and blink on a few coats of mascara.”
Larson “cringed to take photos,” and describes how unattractive she felt, despite her achievements.
Now, she looks back on this moment and feels “only love for myself.”
Brie Larson has potentially the most non-celebrity Instagram account of any celebrity. Post continues after gallery.
Brie Larson on Instagram.
Larson’s words have resonated strongly with her social media following, with almost 40,000 people liking the post and hundreds of fans writing words of support. One woman commented, “I really hope that one day everyone else see themselves this way… I know it took me a while.”
Particularly among women, the feeling of not being good enough is all too familiar. But Larson’s post is a powerful reminder not to waste our time ruminating on our imperfections, and focus instead on loving ourselves, just as we are.